Kindergarten Newsletter

February 21, 2025

Religion

The language of forgiving sins and avoiding punishment is predominant when the Scriptures proclaim the Gospel. But if you slow down and look, Scripture unfolds the fullness of the Gospel in other ways too. Jesus uses His “I Am: statements to tell people that He is the God of the Old Testament – the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. He also uses them to remind people what kind of God He is. He is the bread to feed our souls. He is the light to help us see what steps to take next according to God’s design. He is the Good Shepherd, who lays down His life for us, His sheep. He is the resurrection and our only hope for eternal life.

Special Request

The end of this school year is always a very busy time, and I would like to start getting a jump on some of our end-of-the-year projects.  I am in need of your child’s baby picture.  Pictures taken around their first birthday tend to be the best. I would also like a current picture of your child participating in a favorite activity or interest.  Digital copies are the easiest and can be sent to mrswitek6@gmail.com Hard copies will be returned.  Thanks so much. 

What Have We Learned

Language Lesson Focus – Showing consideration

Essential Question – How do our actions influence others?

Literacy – You may be familiar with the story The Three Billy Goats Gruff but how about The Three Billy Goats Fluff?  This is an amazing story in which Mother Goat, who runs a fluffy fleece business, sympathizes with Mr. Grumpy Troll about all the trip-trapping across the bridge.  How was the problem solved so that the troll was able to get a good night’s sleep? 

Writing – We are beginning a persuasive writing unit with a silly story entitled, I Ain’t Gonna Paint No More by Karen Beaumont. “One day my mama caught me painting pictures on the floor and the ceiling and the walls and the curtains and the door, and I heard my mama holler like I never did before… Is there even a glimmer of hope that this kid would ever get his paints back?

Math – We started a unit on 3-dimensional shapes.  We will focus on spheres, cubes, cylinders, and cones.  I love this unit because we can add block play into a math lesson.  Was it difficult to stack some of the blocks?  Yes, flat sides work best for building. 

This week we review the four seasons of the year by playing a group game on the Smart Board.  Mrs. Lautz helped out with reading the questions and navigation the challenges of technology. 

STEAM – Step one involved creating characters to carry out the challenge. I’m not a big fan of coloring book pictures but for this project, the emphasis needed to be on the bridge building. The characters were taped to blocks so that they would be free-standing. Then a bridge was built so that it was tall enough for the troll to fit under and strong enough for the goats to trip trap over. I loved to see the creativity when cardboard and paper towel tubes joined the building materials.

Afternoon Art – Our self-portraits are being added to the Rafael Lopez-inspired backgrounds, and they will be displayed in the hallway.  

Dramatic Play – Since the igloo is completely finished, I had to buy a few new toys to use on the light tables inside the igloo.  Translucent manipulatives are even better when they are played with on a light table.  

Theme: Endure

Verse: "...and let us run with endurance the race that is set before us, looking to Jesus, the founder and perfecter of our faith..."  Hebrews 12:1-3